Carousel Ranch Stories

Written by a Carousel Ranch dad, about the day that Ayla warmed his heart with her incredible spirit and wisdom far beyond her years.

"The other day I was at Carousel Ranch in Santa Clarita, CA, a place which provides equestrian therapy for special needs children. For many years my son went there, before he decided to stop. Years later, out of nowhere, he asked to return. His mother and I gladly obliged his request, and as I was walking around the property noticing the amazing changes that had taken place in the three years of our absence (the arena is now covered, a play area had been constructed, landscaping was everywhere) my thoughts were interrupted by a voice.

“Hi. How are you?” a little girl near me asked, the question like a hug, because it was warm, and you could tell that she meant it. I looked down. She was tiny, but she had a smile so big that it nearly tipped her over.

Jimmy recently completed the Ready to Work! program and we couldn't be more proud of him!

In the words of his mom...

"That was a fabulous ending to an incredible program. Your program has given us new hope! The doctor insisted that Jimmy would never be able to work and support himself. He was greatly discouraged, thus the bravado. While it may be true that he will need some subsidy, he can still work and be a contributing, valuable member of society. You have done an incredible job and it is literally life altering for my son.

Jimmy gained skills, confidence, knowledge and appropriate workplace behavior and an excellent work ethic. I cannot imagine where my son would have gained all of this without this program. He is now truly "work ready" where he was nowhere near "work ready" before. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for this viable, critical program that has set my son up for success in life!"

**Jimmy was one of two students that recently worked a shift at Wolf Creek Restaurant (photo above) shadowing a server. He is...

Chase is six years old, diagnosed with autism and rides on Saturday mornings. These words from his mom say so much about some of the ways that he benefits from his time at Carousel Ranch...

"We recently traveled back to Chicago, which is where I grew up, to visit family and friends. I have flown with Chase 4 times. Each time was incredibly hard. The airport is extremely loud, and can be too much for Chase sensory wise. So much so, that one time we almost were not allowed to board the airplane because Chase couldn’t calm his body, had intense anxiety and was having pretty big meltdowns.